Night Owl Cards

This year marks the 45th anniversary of my first knowledge of baseball cards and actually owning some. That was in 1974 when my mom gave me a few packs of 1974 Topps. To this day, the look of '74 Topps takes me back to a time when baseball cards were new, fascinating, even strange. I knew I liked these baseball players in their colorful uniforms and I knew I liked that every card featured a different team with different colors. I liked the pictures and the presentation, and the '74 set is probably one of the first times that I was able to appreciate photographs -- most of my world had been drawings and paintings up to that point. That's why I get annoyed when '74 Topps doesn't get its due. Among all of the vintage sets that Topps has released, it is often forgotten. (Have you seen an Archives set with the '74 design? No you have not). But even among the sets that share a decade with 1974 Topps, it's barely appreciated. I'd put 1974 Topps ahead o...